POLITICAL CORRIDOR: Is Prague helping Ukrainian refugees enough? Responsible representatives Politics News
Today, 08:55
In the March Political Corridor, the chairmen of the political clubs in the Prague City Council answered a question about helping refugees from Ukraine. Only the envious discussion provoked the city’s help, for example, in the form of a waiver of Prague public transport fares or in the form of entry to the zoo for one crown upon presentation of a Ukrainian document. How do they perceive the representative scope of assistance provided by Prague to refugees from Ukraine? Is it sufficient or should it be adjusted?
Question: How do you perceive the scope of assistance that Prague provides to Ukrainian refugees? Is it sufficient or should it be adjusted?
The answers are sorted according to the date and time of delivery to the editorial office.
Jan Čižinský (Prague himself)
In Ukraine, women and men are fighting for their homeland, but also for us and for our freedom. We can and should help them with arms supplies and humanitarian aid, but also by being and being accommodating to their wives, children and families. Refugees who left their homes before the Russian aggression have the same obligations and the same rights as the people of Prague. It is perfectly fine to have a few weeks’ time to adapt to the new situation, and it is quite right that our state and our city support and will support refugees from Ukraine just as much as any Praguer who needs it. And we make sure that is the case.
Ondrej Prokop (YES)
City districts are trying to take care of refugees, but they are running out of energy. After appeals from the mayors and requests to the mayor of Hřeb, I believe that the city’s help will also improve. Prague has enough financial resources and cannot leave the mayors in it. I also lack any longer-term plan for how the coalition wants to deal with the crisis. But it really bothers me that the mayor is constantly making life in Prague more expensive for all the people of Prague, instead of thinking that it should be relieved if the government makes no effort to mitigate the effects of the sharp rise in the cost of housing and food. Praguers are losing weight, they are endangered and they have nowhere to take. That is the reality, and if the coalition does nothing about it and continues to negate our proposals, citizens’ solidarity with the refugees will disappear. Single mothers, the elderly and other poor people will blame politicians for not finding free housing and services for them. Rightly. And it’s definitely not just “freebies” to the zoo for Ukrainians. I have to help everyone, no matter where they were born. And both the government and the Prague coalition are completely forgetting our citizens in this crisis.
Pavel Richter (TOP 09 and STAN – United Forces for Prague)
We are experiencing a situation that no one believed we would experience. I perceive the great solidarity and effort on all sides to help the hard-pressed Ukraine and, above all, the specific people. I do not experience those negative voices in my social environment. I can imagine that they exist, but their number is definitely significantly smaller than it looks from the media. Unfortunately, as always, the media believe that they need conflict and confrontation for their reading. Specifically, Prague approves real measures and assistance at practically every Council or Council. It is clear that the situation is being resolved quickly and it is clear from the steps taken so far that Prague will continue to do its utmost to overcome this difficult test.
Zdenek Zajicek (ODS)
Above all, aid must be coordinated. Both on the part of the city, city districts and on the part of the central authorities, ie the crisis staff, the government and the parliament. We must demand that the refugees who come here and stay in the territory of the capital city of Prague do not stay here for months, most likely for weeks or weeks, but rather years. The solution therefore needs to be found in the short term, which is acute assistance, but in the medium to long term. They should also know what we need to change in the legislative area. We may need some changes in the law, for example in the area of housing construction or school infrastructure. Such changes permeate the possibilities of our care for newcomers while meeting the other needs of our citizens. In the long run, it is not possible to solve the situation in housing or in the capacity of schools at the expense of native Praguers. It is simply necessary to find a way to “fit in” together.
Viktor Mahrik (Pirates)
Prague helps refugees as much as possible. Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, the Regional Assistance Center has handled about 51,000 refugees in Ukraine and found accommodation for about 4,000 of them. The refugees came to us with a minimum of things and practically no money, so Prague offers them the opportunity to use free public transport, for example. I believe that even this important help can be for people who have come to us practically without means.